HSVPA and Pubsoft Panel Proposal for SXSW 2014

Self-publishing in grades 9-12

From a young age we teach our kids that they should aspire to soar…

But the world they live in is changing at a rapid pace.

As educators it is our responsibility to prepare them for the world they will have to live in

Part of that responsibility is to equip them with the right tools and skills to enable them to reach their destinations.

When creativity and arts are often disregarded, HSPVA

nourishes creativity

At the Houston School for the Visual and Performing Arts (HSPVA), a magnet school based in Houston that serves students who wish to pursue creative educations, we endeavored to establish our own publishing operation for the creative writing program.

The program would teach the students about new advances in production and distribution in a world of rapidly changing creative content and a technology industry challenging the publishing status quo.

The program would allow students to produce, publish, distribute, and sell their own works all through the school’s publishing operation.

Doing so would provide students with the following skills:

• The ability to produce and bring a creative product to market

• The resourcefulness of using tools to achieve a goal

• Creative collaboration across disciplines (writing and design)

• Business acumen

Challenges to overcome:

• How to build the curriculum into the classroom

• How the program would effect and influence other programs at the school

• Freedom of speech and the ability for students to be able to freely express themselves through creative writing

• The legal ramifications and royalties issue

This panel will discuss the process of implementation and where the program currently stands and our plans for the future.

Because at HSPVA we want our students to soar out in their world and give them the greatest opportunities for future success.

Thank you and we hope you choose our panel.